


Paws & Whiskers

by dreyars



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Prompt Fill
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-23
Updated: 2015-08-23
Packaged: 2018-04-16 18:23:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,612
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4635549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dreyars/pseuds/dreyars
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tsukishima isn't really a cat person, but he's dating a man that acts just like one.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Paws & Whiskers

Tsukishima was never much of a cat person.

Well, he was never really much of an animal person if he was being completely honest.  He could deal with a turtle or a fish or something that just required you to feed it and clean its tank every once in a while.

But a cat? A cat was too needy. A cat needed food and attention and if it didn’t want either of those, it could act like a little asshole and scratch at your hands and hide under your bed and meow all night until you figured out what it ACTUALLY wanted.

It was safe to say Tsukishima didn’t like cats.

Or at least, he thought he didn’t like cats.

Ever since he started dating Kuroo, his friends and teammates joked about how really, he wasn’t dating anyone at all. That in reality, he had actually just adopted a 187 centimeter tall cat.

(Which honestly wasn’t too far off from the mark sometimes.)

Like right now for instance. Tsukishima wasn’t sure what Kuroo had been doing for most of the day, and every time he called for him, he didn’t answer.  Which was all well and fine, because Kuroo, like a cat, was probably either sleeping or doing something weird, so he didn’t bother to disturb him.

But, also like a cat, Kuroo always came and bothered him when all he really wanted was to take a breather, relax, and read a book.  He had been getting ready for bed when Kuroo padded into their bedroom, looking like he just woke up as he scratched at his belly.  Tsukishima knew he had been having a rough week with some of his college classes, but Kuroo looked ready to crawl into bed and snooze despite napping all day long.

After brushing his teeth, Kuroo crawled across their bed and pressed himself into Tsukishima’s side.  He laid his head on Tsukishima’s shoulder just enough so that his hair brushed under the blonde’s nose.  As he fought the urge to sneeze, Tsukishima wondered if there was a possibility that he was allergic to cats. 

But despite the display of affection, Tsukishima was still trying to read a book before bed and Kuroo was bothering him.  He tried to place a hand on Kuroo’s head and push him down so that his head was on his lap instead of his shoulder, but each time Tsukishima tried, Kuroo would just push back against his hand like he wanted his scalp to be scratched.  Tsukishima rolled his eyes at the action, but he indulged his sleepy boyfriend until Kuroo started picking at the corner of the book in his hands.

The book was one of his favorites and the old fashioned fabric cover was beginning to fray around the corners.  Having Kuroo pick at the corners like it was something to play with didn’t really help in relaxing him before bed.  He knew Kuroo just wanted attention, but he should’ve thought to come look for it before 11 at night.

After snapping the book shut, Tsukishima looked down at Kuroo with a frown, hoping his expression would communicate his irritation at the situation.  But Kuroo ignored him as he was already trying to pull Tsukishima down into the bed beside him, pawing at his boyfriend’s shirt like he had claws.

“Why are you being so needy tonight?” Tsukishima mumbled as he finally turned off his bedside lamp.  Kuroo simply grumbled in response, continuing to pull at Tsukishima’s shirt until he finally slipped beneath the covers.

Kuroo pulled Tsukishima onto his chest, rubbing his face along the side of the younger male’s neck.  Kuroo had neglected to shave that day since he didn’t have anywhere he needed to be, and Tsukishima couldn’t help but wince as Kuroo’s whiskers scratched against his soft skin.  Tsukishima pushed Kuroo’s face away with one hand, and he swore he felt teeth nip the inside of his palm.

It always took Kuroo a while to calm down once one of his playful streaks began.  But once Kuroo finally stops nipping at Tsukishima’s hand and pushing against his neck, Tsukishima thinks he really is like a spirited little kitten. 

Kuroo stretches his arms up over his head, letting out a wide, open mouthed yawn as he settles into the bed.  Tsukishima watches him the best he can without his glasses on, but the way he arches his back as he stretches reminds Tsukishima of the cat that used to live under the back porch at his grandparent’s house.  Kuroo was pretty lanky like a cat, if he really thought about it, and he moved quietly and delicately despite being so tall.

Kuroo could sneak out behind walls and scare the shit out of Tsukishima too, which was more like that grumpy old cat than he was likely to admit.

But, times like this, Kuroo was surprisingly cute.  Tsukishima didn’t normally think of cats as cute, but sometimes, there’s that one that tugs on your heartstrings and begs to be loved.  He supposed that is kind of how Kuroo is.  Especially when he tries to pull Tsukishima in so close and nuzzle into him at night.

When Kuroo finally settled on his back after his stretches, he turns his head to look at Tsukishima.  His eyes are wide and dark, cloudy with sleep, but still asking for Tsukishima to crawl up beside him.  Tsukishima sighs, accepting his fate as he lays his head on Kuroo’s shoulder.  This was alright for now, and even though Tsukishima knew he wouldn’t be able to fall asleep like this, the warmth of Kuroo’s chest against the side of his face was calming.  Kuroo would flip over as soon as he felt sleep coming, smushing his head between two pillows and burrowing under the covers like an animal.  But for now, Kuroo’s fingers were lightly dancing up and down his spine, making Tsukishima sigh as he finally felt the remaining tension of the day melt away.

To repay the soft gesture, Tsukishima let his fingers trail across Kuroo’s bare stomach.  Kuroo always slept without a shirt because he got too hot at night, whether he was covered by a blanket or not.  Tsukishima didn’t mind, because the heat of Kuroo’s body always helped take the chill out of his own limbs.  It also made it easier to rub Kuroo’s belly, which was an odd little thing Kuroo really seemed to enjoy.  Kuroo groaned deep in his throat as Tsukishima’s hand pressed lightly into his belly, nails gently scratching across his skin and making him shiver.  Tsukishima thought it was a little strange that Kuroo liked this so much, but he was up for anything innocent that got Kuroo to shut up and turn to jelly in his hands.

After a few minutes of stroking his hand lazily over Kuroo’s stomach, Tsukishima felt a press of lips on his forehead, disturbing him from his thoughts. Kuroo smiled down at him, and Tsukishima felt a small grin spread across his own face as he felt the love pouring from his boyfriend’s gaze. 

Kuroo mumbled that he was ready to actually sleep, giving Tsukishima some warning before he flipped over.  Tsukishima sat up and ran his finger through Kuroo’s hair, pushing his bangs away from his forehead so he could repay Kuroo with a forehead kiss of his own.  When his fingers got caught on a small knot that could’ve been there for days, Tsukishima briefly wondered if Kuroo actually could be hiding cat ears in his mess of hair.  But he quickly shook that thought as his mind shifted to what Kuroo would look like with a long black cat tail.

Kuroo had switched to laying on his stomach before Tsukishima had settled back in to his side of the bed.  He could see that Kuroo’s shoulders were tense, even if the dark, so Tsukishima glided his hands over the muscles in a soothing motion, hoping that maybe Kuroo would actually get a decent night’s sleep for once.  Kuroo let out a loud hum at the touch, the sound almost reminiscent of a cat’s purring.

The hum died off as Kuroo’s shoulder’s relaxed and he finally drifted off to sleep.  Tsukishima smiled to himself as he retracted his hand and tucked it under his head.  He found himself watching Kuroo’s back rise and fall as he prepared himself for sleep, and wondered about how he was so lucky to end up in this situation.

When he first agreed to date Kuroo, he wasn’t very excited.  He only agreed to get Kuroo to stop asking him on dates every other day, but Kuroo swore he wouldn’t regret it.  Tsukishima had rolled his eyes at the time, not really believing a word Kuroo was saying as he promised him the moon.

Tsukishima _never_ imagined that he would end up sleeping in the same bed as Kuroo so many years later, thinking of all the ways that his boyfriend compared to a feline.

Before Kuroo, Tsukishima never really saw himself as a dating person.  Kind of in the same way he never saw himself as a cat person.

But, like a cat, Kuroo had a talent for winning people over with a playful glint in his eye and a good personality and loving nature to back it up.

Tsukishima loved his big, housecat boyfriend, even if he did things that he didn’t quite understand at the time, and he wouldn’t let him go for anything. 

Maybe, somewhere in the back of his mind, Tsukishima liked cats.

But maybe Kuroo was enough of a cat that he had an excuse to never actually own a real cat.

**Author's Note:**

> Request fill for an anon on Tumblr who simply asked for Tsukishima comparing Kuroo to a cat and belly rubs. I just got a cat recently, so I was happy to oblige. Hope you enjoyed!


End file.
